Trending
If gardeners want adult butterflies flying around the gardens, they need host plants in or around the yard that allow butterflies to complete their life cycles. Find out what plants are used by Iowa butterfly caterpillars at the Marshalltown Garden Club program at 11 a.m. on Nov. 2.
Host plants, including annuals, perennials, shrubs and trees, are necessary for butterflies as nectar sources and as places to lay eggs and feed caterpillars. Different butterflies require different host plants, and some have quite a short list of plants support butterfly larva (caterpillars).
Anita Westphal, assistant curator of the Butterfly Wing at Reiman Gardens, will present the program. She is also the Iowa Butterfly Survey Network coordinator, one of the longest running citizen science programs in the state of Iowa. The IBSN, based at Reiman Gardens since 2006, aims to promote butterfly conservation and education in Iowa. IBSN’s citizen science program provides volunteers with training on survey techniques specifically designed for butterfly monitoring, allowing them to collect valuable data on the presence and abundance of butterfly species in Iowa. By engaging volunteers in this effort, IBSN aims to raise awareness of the importance of butterfly conservation and inspire people to take an active role in protecting these important pollinators. Westphal is the daughter of Jim Durbin, whose collecting, photographing and documenting insects eventually grew into Iowanaturemapper.org, a public database built to share the records he has gathered over decades.
This program is free and open to the public and is held at the ISU Extension office at 2608 S. Second St. in Marshalltown. For more information on the program or the Marshalltown Garden Club, contact skycutter@heartofiowa or 641-750-2862.